Paedophile ‘may never be released’ for daylight snatching of ten-year-old

A judge has ruled that a predatory paedophile who snatched, tied up and threatened to kill a ten-year-old boy in a terrifying-three hour ordeal would be jailed indefinitely.

Jackson had been jailed in 1983 for the knife-point abduction of a teenage girl (Picture: West Midlands Police/PA Wire)

Michael Jackson, 50, abducted the boy off the streets in Oldbury, in the West Midlands, before gagging him with duct tape and locking him in a cupboard.

The boy was only able to escape after kicking open the door and raising the alarm at a window when Jackson left the house to build up an alibi.

Judge Martin Walsh sentenced Jackson to seven years, but warned that it was likely to be ‘very many years, if ever’ before he would be deemed safe for release.

‘The facts of this case are truly horrific and are the stuff of every parent’s nightmare,’ the judge said.

‘I am satisfied that had (the ten-year-old boy) not escaped, he would have been subjected to further serious sexual abuse or worse.

‘He was, fortuitously, able to escape from the cupboard. When he entered the bedroom, he saw a knife, pliers and a hammer – articles he believed would be used to kill him.

‘It is simply impossible to imagine the sheer terror experienced by that young child as a result of your actions.

‘I am satisfied that you pose a significant risk of serious harm to children and that an indeterminate sentence is necessary for the protection of the public.’

As well as the charges against the ten-year-old, Jackson had pleaded guilty to the abduction of a girl, also ten, a month earlier.

He was also jailed in 1983 for a knife-point kidnap and assault of a teenage girl.

In the days following the boy’s abduction, hundreds of people held demonstrations in the local area calling for action to protect children from paedophiles.

Commenting on the case, Detective Chief Inspector Gary Booth, who led the investigation, said: ‘In all my 28 years of police service I have never dealt with another case such as this, where a man has snatched an innocent child off the streets in broad daylight.

‘This incident had a massive impact on the child, a second victim who came forward shortly after, and the wider community who were hugely concerned about their own families and how such a distressing offence could be committed on their doorstep.’

Announcing the seven-year sentence – which is the minimum – Judge Walsh stressed: ‘I want to make it absolutely clear to you and the public that this does not mean that you will be released after serving this term.

‘You will only be released once the Parole Board are satisfied that you no longer pose a significant risk of serious harm to children.’